


Cravex and the Case of Fanon being Worse- A Visionaries Essay

by OverthinkingMind



Category: Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light
Genre: Character Study, Essay, Fanon, Gen, Mental Health Issues, Meta, Nonfiction, Rant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:53:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24782653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverthinkingMind/pseuds/OverthinkingMind
Summary: An essay discussing about Cravex's character and why he's not the most evil Darkling Lord out of the group. How this interpretation of his character came about, and why widely accepted headcanons can be the worse.
Kudos: 2
Collections: March Meta Matters Challenge, Meta Manifesto 2020 Fest





	Cravex and the Case of Fanon being Worse- A Visionaries Essay

**Author's Note:**

> Before we begin, I wanted to say that I don't hate fanon entirely. Sometimes I need a laugh once and a while. I do find some cute headcanons, and even ones where it made me rethink how I viewed the character. I'm more irritated by the common occurrence that fanon will somehow become truth for no reason at all, or the interpretation is so bad I wonder how it even got popular in the first place.
> 
> This is the latter case, and it's in a smaller fan base no less.
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy!

I tell myself that I should be over this by now but the subject still lingers no matter what. At this point, screw it. It’s been about two or three years now, and I gotta get my thoughts out about this. Anyway, here goes.

I remember when I first read the summary of a deleted character analysis on a [_Visionaries_ fan website](https://web.archive.org/web/20070707133312/http://www.hannagram.com/prysmos/articles.php?cat_id=5). I wasn’t the happiest with it because, well, it didn’t sound close to him. It made him sound like a generic villain with no interesting qualities to him. It went along the lines of: He has no remorse and will commit violence if it benefits him. He’s also callous about the feelings of others. Which is unfortunate because I enjoy meta about characters, and reading what the author found that I might have missed. This wasn’t the case here.

Then I explored the archives further. Reading through the forums and [Cravex’s bio](https://web.archive.org/web/20060426140422/http://www.hannagram.com/visionaries/characters/cravex.html) written by the fan running the site, and it was the same sentiment. Basically, it boils down to Cravex is a psychopath who doesn’t care about anyone other than himself, and he’s just as bad as Darkstorm. He also enjoys the suffering of his enemies and taking out his frustrations out on anybody. And I say to you: what the hell are you talking about? I asked myself if we were watching the same character while reading.

For a long time, I didn’t know how to write this essay on his character; while not sounding irritated by an article and a fan bio long forgotten. And the thing with fanon is that, it’s just a certain headcanon that fans have accepted. But just because the majority hold that view doesn’t mean it’s a good take.

So this study will examine Cravex, and give an interpretation that doesn’t use a blanket explanation that boils down to “he’s evil, guys”. Talk about a short story from the UK that was part of a Marvel’s 1989 annual, discuss how this interpretation came into being, and why widely accepted fanon can be the worse.

_**Cravex: Psychopathic Monster?** _

Already we’re getting into muddy waters. Psychopathy, a term that is easily interchangeable with sociopathy. One born with no empathy and the other being made this way. The issue here is that medical professionals and psychologists do not use psychopath or sociopath for diagnosing patients. They’re not listed in the DSM-5, but the official term would be antisocial personality disorder. And remember, just because someone is being rude or impulsive doesn’t always mean they have the disorder. Because if that were the case, then that would mean that all the Darkling Lords have it. But that’s the thing.

Reading about the symptoms is one thing, but reading about people living with the disorder is another. And after studying the articles and Cravex, I have to say he definitely doesn’t have it. The reason is that it’s the intensity of the emotions. The articles and posts from people’s experiences with ASPD have a something in common, they do have feelings but they’re not as intense as the average person. To them these emotions go by without much thought, and thus there’s this deep-seeded sense of boredom. And so they go find something to fill the void, even if it is questionable and/or illegal. But Cravex on the other hand has very intense emotions, and he isn’t looking to find a high to fill an unending emptiness. Because if that were the case, he would have left by now. But he hasn’t. And yet, why? What reason is there for him to stay?

Well Cravex swore loyalty to Darkstorm, much to his dismay. But I do think he does take being loyal seriously, but not to Mortdred’s extreme that is. Let me explain. The one episode that defined Cravex’s character was in the beginning of the third episode, [_Quest for the Dragon’s Eye_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4GbMu2N-r8). I think this is really important because the episodes up to this point are crucial for the blow out here.

They conquered New Valarak, they have dinner to celebrate, and Reekon asks the important question of how they’re going to divide the spoils. Darkstorm in his moment of triumph decides that he’s going to hoard all of it, and they start arguing. Meanwhile, Lexor complains to Cravex that they did all the work and get nothing at the end. Darkstorm overhears this and Lexor lies about being shocked by Reekon’s insubordination.

This was the straw that broke the camel’s back for Cravex. This is the rawest moment that I have ever watched from the 80’s, so far. It pretty much got me to watch it, but I do think that a lot people miss what was written between the lines while he rants. It’s hilarious how over-the-top the acting is, but there are reasons for him being pissed at them. It’s understandable, but not justifiable for beating them up.

Lexor voices his opinions about how unfair Darkstorm is being for hogging the riches while they get nothing. Then Lexor turns around and lies when Darkstorm starts questioning what he was saying. He did this to save face, and to get Cravex mad enough to lash out at Darkstorm. Which backfired horribly for him.

Darkstorm is a greedy pig thinking he can hoard all of the rewards, even though he only came up with the idea. The Darkling Lords did everything for him, but Darkstorm only sees them as pawns in the end.

Reekon is a mercenary who has no real loyalty to anyone. Whoever offers him a larger paycheck, Reekon would immediately side with them.

Mortdred is a sycophantic servant who’s so infatuated with Darkstorm that he can barely form his own opinions.

Cindarr, well, he gets decked in the face out of principle. And this is the one key word that sums up everything in this scene. Principle.

Cravex has a set of principles that he follows, but each of the Darkling Lords violates one of these truths. So Cravex grows to detest them more and more until that breaking point is reached, but there is the seventh episode with Mortdred where he begins to respect him a little soon after.

So, here’s what I can gather from his rants.

  1. If you’re going to criticize someone at least say to their face, and not hide behind someone and expect them to do your dirty work. You are nothing more than a manipulatively coward.
  2. Just because you came up with the plan doesn’t mean you get all the glory and rewards. Everyone else pulled their weight, so divide it up with the others. You greedy swine!
  3. Money is nice and all. But at the cost of loyalty, then you’ve never were loyal from the start. For enough money, you would betray yourself!
  4. Being loyal to a cause, a person, a leader are fine. But to constantly sing praises about them, and to not be critical of their actions or ideas when there’s clearly something wrong, is maddening. Have you no will of your own?!



~~I remember a comment on a video that sums him up perfectly well. Sadly the OP for the video closed the comment section because of COPPA, so you can’t go read it. But it went something like this~~.I checked the video again and they have the comment section back up, and here's what the comment actually said and the person who posted.

_“Cravex is pretty insightful for the angry guy.”_

_-DrBeard_

_**Cravex and the Suffering of His Enemies (Meaning** **He’s Not the Only One)**_

Another thing I’ve noticed from the fan bio that it said that he enjoys the suffering of his enemies. Yes, that’s true to some extent. The suffering comes from fighting the Spectral Knights in combat and outsmarting them. Sometimes even he’s laughs at the expense of his team mates. I find it odd that he gets singled out the most out of all the Darkling Lords. Because they react to the same degree to the same things: the suffering of the Spectral Knights by their hands, and at the expense of one of their own.

I find it very strange that fans would quickly acknowledge the actions of each of the other Darkling Lords, and then move on from there. Which is fine because they’re bad guys, duh. But with Cravex, it’s a different standard for some reason. But it’s totally fine to point out Darkstorm’s actions and mention how evil he is, because he’s technically the sort of big bad of the series. But before I go off the wall any further, here are a few examples.

  * Lexor attempted to drown the Spectral Knights in Darkstorm’s dungeon. All because Ectar made of the sound of his voice ( _The Dark Hand of Treachery_ ).
  * Virulina escaped from the Kraken as she trapped Galadria with it ( _The Age of Magic Begins_ ).
  * Cindarr kicked down some large icicles from the cave’s ceiling, and Cryotek is buried. Cindarr chuckles to himself as he’s about to leave the cave ( _The Age of Magic Begins_ ).
  * Mortdred enjoyed seeing Feryl at his lowest at the Sign of the Ram ( _Feryl Steps Out_ ).
  * In the same episode, Mortdred proclaims that he’ll have Feryl’s head on a silver platter for his master ( _Feryl Steps Out_ ).
  * In a later part of a different episode, Mortdred chuckled at the name “Old Leoric” along with Cravex ( _Power of the Wise_ ).
  * Cindarr laughed at the prospect of Cryotek (his arch nemesis) being his slave ( _The Overthrow of Merklynn_ ).
  * Lexor tries to get Cindarr to back-stab Arzon and Witterquick for the medicine, but fails ( _Horn of Unicorn, Claw of Dragon_ ).
  * Virulina and Lexor would rather have let Darkstorm drowned and be entertained by it ( _The Overthrow of Merklynn_ ).



Then there’s Darkstorm and there is a lot to unpack with him.

  * Darkstorm from the very beginning has belittled his most loyal servant dozens of times and enjoys every minute of it.
  * He clearly doesn’t care about anyone other than himself.
  * He has no code he lives by. He just does whatever he wants.
  * Forced four knights to swear loyalty to him when they pleaded him to release them.
  * He has taken great delight of his people’s fear of him and their enslavement.
  * Has manipulated and toyed with fear-driven villagers on two different occasions.
  * Tries and fails to persuade Feryl to join his side.
  * Has used his decay spell to make Leoric an old man.
  * Went crazy with power (more-so than he alright had) in _The Overthrow of Merklynn_.
  * He has setup a chess board in his throne room to use his servants as the pieces. Their fate ranges from hay, the moat or to a blazing furnace.



There’s more with Darkstorm, but I would be here all day. Cravex on the other hand is an enigma compared to the other Lords. He actually has some morals to him, and he stands by them. Such as he finds slavery repugnant, especially seeing how Cindarr just laughs at the thought of his enemy being his slave. Seeing a nice old man laughing at his rival (someone who you try to best them in combat and wit, and you have respect for), being presented groveling with his freedom taken away. [This makes him feel confused and disgusted by him](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1g2s4q?start=730).

So if Cravex isn’t pure evil, and he’s not as bad or somehow worse than Darkstorm. What’s up with this guy? Well, here’s what I can tell from him. He just doesn’t like people in general, and he would rather keep to himself. Cravex becomes pessimistic when the situation seems impossible. He enjoys a good thrill, and he apparently likes horses too. The last one I’m not making up.

_**A Complicated Scavenger in a Messy World** _

I believe Cravex has a general distrust and dislike of people in the series. Given the planet was once a technological utopia, and people are now trying to survive the new age. It’s understandable why he acts and feels this way. He makes money by selling whatever he’s finds/steals, and we have no clue if he’s from a kingdom or not. The fifth episode suggests that he does run one, as Darkstorm tells Mortdred to take him to Cravex as they ride in the Sky Claw.

He keeps his wits up to any given situation, and [he starts to feel uneasy about the location they’re in](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1g33yh?start=991). And [when he’s put into a tight corner](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1g2s4q?start=994), when it seems like everything is becoming more and more hopeless, he starts to sound worried, defeated, and soft. The bleakness of it all makes him pessimistic, and he almost accepts what is to about come next. Until someone does something to snap him out of it, and in way helps him see there is still a chance to do something about it. I’ve only seen him act this way in front of the other lords, never the Spectral Knights or with people in general.

Another aspect of Cravex is that he barely interacts with the other Darkling Lords until something needs to be said, and he keeps a lot of things to himself. In a world where people would try to blackmail you for money with whatever dirt they can get. Or a person can lull you into a false sense of security and companionship, and then they later stab you in the back for personal gain. It’s understandable not to talk about yourself or form any meaningful relationships with anybody.

The only time where he does genuinely form a bond with someone is Mortdred, surprisingly enough. I found it fascinating that he went from disliking Mortdred’s bootlicking behavior, and he doesn’t want anything to do with it. To he would rather hang out, trust, and joke with him. This was within a span of about eight episodes and it continues on from there.

It was an odd element in _Power of the Wise_ , but I enjoyed the idea that Cravex and Mortdred becoming better team mates and being friends. The change between the two of them would have happened in the seventh episode, _The Overthrow of Merklynn_. I know talk about this episode a lot in my previous works, but this is the most development that those two will ever get. But let’s focus on Cravex’s reward. Shall we?

Darkstorm shows Cravex his potential prize for being loyal to him, and I must say the vision is bizarre in of itself. Seriously, look at this scene.

The architecture makes no sense. Where do the stairs go? I don’t know, they just exist. There are so many horse statues, and I counted. There’s like about seven of these things. And for all I know, there may be more off screen. But he does have nice garden, though. Then there’s the horse race. Yes, the cherry on top the fantasy sundae. He is the most soft-spoken man, and he sounds so disappointed that racing has become boring to him. All because his horse was about to win its 4,000th race. Let me repeat. Cravex was getting bored with horse racing because it was on its 4,000th winning streak. But the horse loses, and Cravex is happy that racing is thrilling again.

The first time I’ve watched this episode, I was laughing my ass off. It never occurred to me that Cravex, the badass fighter, likes horses. No. Just the idea of him having the fluffiest imagination on Prysmos never crossed my mind. But the best part was just imagining the look on Mortdred and Cindarr’s faces as they watch Cravex’s reward play out. I have to assume that whatever opinion they had on him changed from thereafter. It wouldn’t make sense if it didn’t. Lastly, it threw me into a loop because of how calm he is. I was so used to him being upfront and diving headlong into battle for the pass six episodes, that this scene took me by surprise. And you know what? I really adore this side of him. It adds another layer to his character in the same way Mortdred’s fantasy does.

It would be interesting to explore that with the end of the technological era, and might makes right is what’s keeping Prysmos barely together that maybe Cravex doesn’t want anyone to know this side of him. That he finds his soft side a sign of weakness in this second age of magic. Where power and strength matter the most right now. And so, he faces constant stress and conflict with no rest for him. Where having a strong, warrior front is a safer bet than being vulnerable in front others.

Again Cravex is still a jerk and one of the villains, but he isn’t as evil or worse than Darkstorm than what most fans would believe. But this does raise the question, though. How did we get here?

_**How Did We Get Here?** _

I can think of a few reasons why this fanon exist, but the answer’s obvious. It’s because Cravex is an underdeveloped character. The examples I used to counter these points are either not overt, or they’re just jokes. So people tend to miss them because of these two reasons and just not think about it. But I asked myself: what did, or was, the cause for fanon Cravex to be common? Until some time ago where I realized why it existed, and it was right there the whole time. I would guess it all started in episode eleven, _Sorcery Squared_.

You may be asking; why this particular episode? What did it do to create this piece of fanon you personally dislike? Simple, it’s how the writer for the episode wrote Cryotek with the phylot totem. I would suggest to watch the full episode to have some knowledge for the topic at hand. You can find it [here](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1g37qp), but the short summary is this. Through a magical dungeon mishap, Cryotek accidentally gains Cravex’s phylot totem. The bear and phylot battle for dominance within him, and so it causes his personality to flip-flop; from his good nature, stoicism to a power hungry, revenge-driven madman. The Spectral Knights and Darkling Lords must team-up in order to stop Cryotek and get the phylot removed. I think this episode is a piece to the puzzle as to why some fans look at Cravex in this light.

It’s strange for an episode to be centered not only on Cryotek, but the phylot totem as well. So, why does Cravex play such a small part in the story? He barely does or says anything through out the episode. Even when he tries to do anything to get his totem back, and he only made things worse, he’s immediately put off to the side. It makes no sense.

There was a missed opportunity right here in the episode. My question is why not have both Cryotek and Cravex grow from the experience? Why not have Cravex learn that his impulsiveness will cause more harm than good, while keeping Cryotek's lesson the same? It would give Cravex some nuance to him, and it would show he can grasp what happened during these events even if it’s a little bit. It would be something. But like I mention, it’s strange that these two don’t share the spotlight during the episode.

It makes the missed opportunity even worse because the next episode, _Honor Among Thieves_ , does develop two characters: Ectar and Reekon. So, if those two can have some development from backstories to their dynamic. Why can’t Cryotek and Cravex have the same?

But since Cravex didn’t get to play a major role in the episode, and his development in the series wasn’t overt, so people assumed through how Cryotek acted with this particular totem it must mean that’s how Cravex is all the time. And I almost fell for it when I first got into the series, too. But once I thought it through, it doesn’t make much sense with him based on the text of the show.

Another piece to the puzzle are the Marvel comics, and the writer’s interpretation of the characters. Parts of Cravex’s personality were either removed or toned down to a point where he reads like very other minor villain in existences.

The only things I liked about him in the comics are the following: he’s been given the nickname **Cravex the Curious** for his spy work, he can pull off an impressive back flip, and his casual clothes are nice. The popped collar suits him. And those are the only good things I can say about him, sadly. He’s not the same character at this point. The comics tossed out the things I liked so much about him. There was a reason why he became my favorite Darkling Lord out of the entire cast. What a pity.

But wait! Was there ever a story where Cravex was well written along the others? Where he isn’t written to be a human natural disaster or boring, and he genuinely helps at the end? Yes, there is one such story. And it’s called _False Light at Fultch Rock_.

_**A UK Short Story did it Better** _

Back in 1989 in the UK, there was an annual published by Marvel where it included two original short stories along with six character bios, and the first issue of the comics. The first is called _Edge_ (written by Ian Rimmer) and the last one is titled _False Light at Fultch Rock_. It was written by Dan Abnett for the annual. The latter is the one that I want to talk about because it was surprisingly good.

A quick synopsis: It begins at a monastery located at the rocky cliff side where it has been storming for many months. The leader named Murnoc who is a Master Lightfinder awaits for the storm to settle along with its namesake to arrive.

Meanwhile, Arzon is traveling to many townships to offer them the protection of the Spectral Knights. He travels to Fultch Rock hoping to stop and rest at the manor, but he encounters Darkstorm and they fight. Arzon is defeated when Cravex appears with his fear spell. The two leave the unconscious Arzon for else where. Later Arzon is helped by the brothers of the Lightfinders, and they take him to their castle. He meets Murnoc, and they talk for a bit as they eat.

We learn about the Order of the Lightfinders and their beliefs. Such as finding the Light of Salvation and the fight against the Aftermech. Arzon tells him that he would like to offer them protection if they need it. Murnoc is touched by the thought, but he tells him that he already has protectors. And it’s none other than Darkstorm and Cravex. Arzon is shocked by the revelation, and he tries to warn him that what they’re doing is a big mistake. Cravex is about to kick his ass, but Murnoc breaks them up and orders the brothers to prepare a room for Arzon to stay for the night.

In his room, the storm has picked up once again, and he’s lost in thought and unable to sleep. He thinks that Darkstorm somehow tricked the Lightfinders, and so he needs to try to persuade them. He tries to fall asleep but is awaken by a sword pressed against his neck. At first he thought either Darkstorm or Cravex were going to kill him, but as he gets up from bed this isn’t the case. Instead he is surrounded by several brothers of the Lightfinders with their blades out and ready.

Else where in the castle, Darkstorm and Cravex are searching for an artifact called the Crystal of Light. The reason is because there are rumors that the power crystal is within Fultch Rock’s castle. They find it but are trapped as dozens of the Lightfinders come out of hiding. They learn that the reason that they were lured here is because of the magic they bear in their armor and staves. In essence, the crystal was a lie.

Having been stripped of their magic and tossed into a dungeon with a magic-less Arzon. They form a temporary truce, and they break out of the dungeon. They struggle their way out as they regain their stolen items. They make it out as Leoric arrives having missed the action. They part ways with no fights breaking out between the two sides, and the story ends.

This is possibly the best interpretation of the _Visionaries_ I have read so far, and here’s why.

First off, how well are the characters handled? Personally, they were written very well. Darkstorm and Cravex retained their cartoon personalities, but there’s a sense of layers to them as they teamed up with Arzon to escape from their captors. Even Arzon was truly a delight to read, and I usually find his cartoon personality boring. Arzon from the comics was pretty good and promising, but he was still missing something. This short story managed to combined parts of his character from each iteration, and he’s actually feels balanced out.

Darkstorm isn’t written to be a raging megalomaniac Evil Overlord. He’s still a greedy, power-hungry narcissist, but Darkstorm is able to put aside his differences with Arzon at their lowest point. At the end, I loved how Darkstorm just hesitates at the doorway of the castle as he’s about to part ways from Arzon. Thinking that he might agree with him that it is sad to see their cooperation end so quickly. Another thing I enjoyed the most was the dialogue. I could practically imagine Darkstorm and Cravex saying these lines.  
  


“… _The Crystal of Light. It must be like Merklyn’s. With it, I will be supreme.”_

“ _You?”_

“ _The Darkling Lords. Whatever,” said Darkstorm hurriedly._

_-pg. 58, Marvel UK Visionaries Annual_   
  


And Cravex isn’t written to be either wraith incarnate or a bland evil minion. He’s still a force to be reckoned with, but he retains his skepticism and growing unease as they continue to look for the crystal. Plus his pessimistic tendencies are shown once more when he finds himself in a tight spot.

“ _What if the rumours weren’t true?” asked Cravex._

_..._

_The room was oval, and lined with tapestries. At the centre was an alter, on the top of which sat a great crystal, glowing a fiery green in the darkness. Cravex gulped._

_..._

“If _we get out of here,” said Cravex, gloomy._

_\- pg. 58, Marvel UK Visionaries Annual_

The escape was a blast because the three of them worked incredibly as a team. Arzon with his knowledge spell helping Darkstorm anticipate attacks from the Lightfinders, Darkstorm’s decay spell rotting the poles that hold the heavy tapestries on the walls, and even Cravex’s fear spell helps fended off the brothers. His spell was a genuine help in the story, not a hindrance because reasons. It’s so awesome!

Another thing that makes this story good is that it properly expands a sizable chuck of Prysmos. Instead of Sun Imps causing mischief, devilish wizards making trouble, or the Darkling Lords manipulating villagers. The writer decided to create a brotherhood that hopes to use our trio’s powers against a dangerous, unknown force called the Aftermech. A group of followers with their own agenda with the knights of the magical light. I loved this element because it was different from the usual in past stories, and it demonstrates that there are many more threats that doesn’t revolve around their petty disputes or even wizards.

I was giddy that Darkstorm and Cravex were being tricked by an outside party along with Arzon. Again, it was something unique and I was looking for something like this in a _Visionaries_ story. The Lightfinders are the most integral part of the plot because without them: the fun, action, great character moments, and teamwork would be lost.

I can totally see that the writer got to know the characters very well as he was making his own, and made an effort to balance out the unique elements from both the show and comics for this story. I highly recommend it. It’s a short and fun tale to be had.

Yet despite all this amazing characterization for Arzon, Darkstorm, and Cravex and the adventure they had, this annual is very hard to find and you can find it on ebay for about $70 with free shipping. Yeah, I’m not spending that much just for two original stories from the UK. The next best thing, and I’m lucky this video exists, is on [Cymru’s channel](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=karSrPCejn4). He made a video showing the annual and what’s inside, so I got to read some of what I could in the book.

Another reason why this piece of fanon even exist. And from what I can see, time and time again, fanon tends to be shallow and flanderizing.

_**Fanon can be Shallow and Flanderizing…** _

[Fanon](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Fanon) is when the majority of fans accept an interpretation of certain elements in the story and characters, even though it has little to no basis in canon. In short, it’s a headcanon that a majority of fans have accepted. Sometimes it can be thought-provoking and it adds layers to characters that has some bases in the canon. While most of the time it can be stupid fun, and then there’s just plain flanderizing at times.

[Flanderization](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Flanderization) is when a character’s traits that helps them stand out, are exaggerated to the point where they become one-dimensional archetypes. The name comes from the character Ned Flanders from _The Simpsons_. In the beginning, Ned served as a contrast to Homer where Ned was a kind, considerate neighbor who was an attentive father who attended church. While Homer was the complete opposite of it. As the show continued on, he became a caricature of his former self that he is now a very religious man. It pretty much consumed his whole character after that.

This is my main issue with fanon Cravex. Some fans have started taking it as truth, and then they go write meta about it and think that’s good enough. This pattern was common in both the meta’s summaries and even fanfiction. They tried to take _Visionaries_ to a more serious, mature direction while trying to expand the world of Prysmos.

The problem with writing a more serious take is that it loses its charm, and some of the characters tend be two-dimensional while reading through. Cravex got it worse. The Marvel comics did the same thing. Some characters benefited from it, a few were mixed, and some didn’t translate well. So it makes me wonder if a few fans choose the comics over the cartoon because of the comic’s tone. Or they even tried to mix both of them with varying results. That’s a possibility, too.

The reason? Well, as I explained before, Cravex is an underdeveloped character. The writers only had so much to work, and they had to try to write about these fourteen characters within thirteen episodes. The comics had it worse as they were cancelled during a four part story arc. Obviously some characters were given more time than others to compensate. Cravex was the unlucky one, unfortunately.

So fans formed a simple interpretation from what they remembered. From a first time watch and/or read of the _Visionaries_ again since around 1987-’88, and what little material they had, you get fanon/flanderized Cravex as the result. No depth, no dimensions, just a short-tempered lord of evil. Nothing. Which is a shame because Cravex could have been a unique 80’s villain. Scratch that, he could have been a great antagonist.

Basically what I’m saying here is that I reject your reality, and substitute my own. Because Cravex deserves better than being boiled down to the embodiment of rage and a psychopath.

_**The Conclusion** _

Cravex is not an evil psychopath who’s just as bad as Darkstorm. He isn’t just about yelling, screaming, and going crazy because reasons. There is a fair bit of development with him, but sadly a lot of it is covert not overt, so people tend to miss it. And no, using Cryotek during his magical mishap to sum up Cravex’s character doesn’t work either.

My final thoughts when it comes to Cravex’s character is that he’s a scavenger that tries to survive on a planet where people are desperate. Thus, he has become distrustful towards people, and so he isn’t the most social person out there. The only person I have seen him be comfortable with halfway through the series is Mortdred. He clearly has principles he lives by, and he finds some things morally reprehensible such as slavery. He’s still a jerk, but I love that he’s upfront about whatever topic is at hand, and he gets shit done. But I also do enjoy the thought that he likes horses. Let the man get some rest is all I’m saying.

 _False Light at Fultch Rock_ is a good story that balances the elements of both the cartoon and comics perfectly. It expands on the world of Prysmos making it lively with a new danger they must confront, and the characters sound like themselves. I just wish there was a scan of the stories to share with others, and actually sit down and read it in its entirety. It’s worth a read if you’re lucky to find the Marvel UK annual at a reasonable price. No seriously, good luck with that.

And lastly fanon, while it can be fun and enjoyable, can be basic and even worse flanderizing. And what I learned while writing this is that terrible fanon can live in fandom in all shapes and sizes. No one can escape the bad takes on every character in existences. Especially when it tries to be a more serious and mature take.


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